The exchange rate of the Lebanese pound broke all records today Tuesday, and formed at 100,000 pounds to one dollar in parallel markets, the country’s currency exchanges said, which is facing one of the world’s worst economic crises since the mid-19th century.

The official exchange rate was set in February at 15,000 pounds to the dollar, compared to 1,507 to the dollar at the start of the crisis in 2019.

This new record low for the Lebanese hryvnia comes as banks resumed an indefinite strike that began in early February. The Association of Lebanese Banks is protesting what it described as “arbitrary” court measures against credit institutions, which were taken after depositors went to court to gain access to their savings.

Depositors are no longer able to access their savings locked up in banks as restrictions have been imposed on withdrawals and money transfers.

After appeals were filed by depositors, judges tried to seize the assets of bank managers or board members.

The banks reopened after caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati intervened in late February to block the work of one of the judges investigating one bank.

In mid-February dozens of depositors they had broken bank windows and burned car tires in Beirut to demand their money.

Lebanon is facing one of the world’s worst economic crises since 1850, with the country’s population violently impoverished.

In early March, supermarkets in Lebanon began to list product prices in US dollars, following a decision by the authorities due to the rapid devaluation of the hryvnia.

Supermarkets had previously stopped listing food prices for the same reason. In a country that imports 90% of its products, restaurants and shops have started listing prices in dollars for months.

Food prices have risen dramatically since 2019. According to the World Bank inflation in Lebanon – the highest in the world – reached 332% from January 2021 to July 2022.

The political crisis is exacerbating the situation, as the country has been without a president since November 1. The divided parliament has yet to elect a new head of state.

Yesterday Monday, the Lebanese judiciary asked Riyad Salameh, governor of the Bank of Lebanon, who is being prosecuted both in the country and abroad for several financial crimes, to appear before European judges to be questioned, according to a judicial source.